Two Oxford dons say they have suffered vitriolic abuse because their stance on Israel's actions in Palestine has been misrepresented.

In April, Prof Richard Dawkins and Prof Colin Blakemore signed a letter published in The Guardian suggesting the EU should suspend academic funding to Israel to reinforce concern about the invasion of the West Bank.

A loose translation of the letter in the French newspaper La Libration led to them being implicated in a boycott of Israeli scientists and research institutions, which they say was never their intention.

Both academics say they have been subjected to a barrage of hate mail and that their relationships with Jewish friends and colleagues has suffered.

Prof Blakemore, who has received bombs and HIV infected needles in the past over his stance on vivisection, said the correspondence he has received from the pro-Israeli lobby is as bad as anything he has suffered.

"The flood of vituperative mail has really been a surprise," he said.

Despite this, Prof Blakemore stands by the original letter he signed.

He said: "Israel enjoys a privilege in receiving EU funding and I signed the letter at a time when Israel was being condemned by virtually every EU leader."

Hate mail sent to Prof Dawkins convinced him to disavow his earlier stance on Israel.

He said: "When I signed the letter, Sharon was rampaging through the West Bank.

"The original letter tried to mobilise the scientific community in a small and modest way and it was sent at a time of immense desperation, but I've never received such a vitriolic lot of hate mail and as a result I've withdrawn my support for the first letter."

Oxford academics are now spearheading a campaign to reinforce links with Israeli research institutions damaged by the boycott.

Baroness Greenfield, a professor of pharmacology at Oxford University and director of the Royal Institution, is hoping to take a delegation of academics to Israel in March to strengthen bonds.

She said: "I can't see what the boycott hopes to achieve apart from ill will."